Mutton in Ramekins RicePeanut Bread ButterApple SauceTokay Grapes Coffee
BETTINA'S RECIPES
(All measurements are level)
Mutton in Ramekins(Three portions)
1½C-cold mutton2/3C-brown gravy½t-salt1t-chopped mint1 egg-yolk1 egg-white, beaten stiff
Mix the mutton, gravy, salt, mint and egg-yolk thoroughly. Add the egg-white. Turn into well-buttered ramekins or china baking dishes. Bake in a moderate oven in a pan of hot water for twenty-five minutes. Serve in the ramekins.
Rice(Three portions)
½C-rice2 qts. boiling water1t-salt1T-butter
Wash the rice, add slowly to the boiling salted water. Boil twenty minutes. Pour the rice in a strainer and rinse with cold water. Place in the oven for five minutes to dry. Serve warm, dotted with butter.
Peanut Bread(Twelve slices)
2C-flour4t-baking powder½t-salt4T-"C" sugar1 egg½C-chopped peanuts¾C-milk
Mix thoroughly the flour, baking powder, salt, sugar and peanuts. Add the egg and milk. Stir vigorously two minutes. Place in a well-buttered bread pan, and bake thirty-five minutes in a moderate oven.
AFTER THE FOOTBALL GAME
"THERE are the men now," said Mrs. Dixon, rolling up the hose she had been darning. "Good!" said Bettina. "The dinner is just ready for them, and I'm glad they didn't keep us waiting."
"Hello! Hello!" shouted Frank and Bob, letting in a gust of cold air as they opened the door. "Whew! It's cold!"
"How was the game?"
"Fine! 39 to 0 in favor of Blake!"
"Not very exciting, I should think."
"Still, Frank here wanted to bet me that Blake would be badly beaten!"
"Frank!" said Charlotte in exasperation. "Is that the way you show your loyalty to your home college?"
"Shame on you, Frank!" grinned Bob. "Well, dinner ready? I'm about starving!"
"Bettina has a regular 'after-the-game' dinner tonight," said Charlotte. "Just the kind to make a man's heart rejoice!"
"Hurray!" said Bob, stirring up the grate fire. "And afterward we'll have our coffee in here, and toast marshmallows. Shall we?"
"Suits me!" said Frank. "Anything you suggest suits me, if it's something to eat."
"Dinner's ready," said Bettina. "Come into the dining-room, people, and tell us about the game. Charlotte and I have mended all your hose this afternoon, and we deserve a royal entertainment now."
"Bettina," said Frank, "do you expect us to talk when you set a dinner like this before us?"
The menu consisted of:
Flank Steak, Braized with VegetablesCabbage SaladBread ButterBrown Betty with Hard SauceCoffee
BETTINA'S RECIPES
(All measurements are level)
Flank Steak Braized with Vegetables(Four portions)
1½ lbs. flank steak, 1¼ inches thick2T-flour2t-salt1T-butter1½C-sliced, raw potatoes½C-thinly sliced onions1 green pepper, sliced thin1C-tomato pulp
Cut with a knife across the grain of the flank steak, to prevent it from curling up. Sprinkle the flour and one teaspoonful of salt on both sides of the meat. Dot with butter, and place in an oblong baking pan. Over the meat place a thick layer of sliced raw potatoes. Add the green pepper, and season with one-half a teaspoonful of salt. Place the onions next and the rest of the salt. (One-half a teaspoonful.) Pour one cup of stewed or raw tomato pulp over all the mixture, and cover the baking pan tightly. Cook slowly in the oven for two hours. One-half hour before the meat is done, remove the cover to allow it to brown. Water may need to be added to prevent burning. In serving, very carefully transfer the steak to a hot platter, preserving the various layers of vegetables. To serve, slice down through the layers as through a loaf.
Cabbage Salad(Four portions)
2C-chopped cabbage2 pieces of celery½t-salt¼t-paprika½C-salad dressing or enough to moisten
Chop the cabbage and the celery fine. Add salt, paprika and salad dressing. Serve cold.
Brown Betty(Four portions)
2C-bread crumbs2C-sliced apples, pared and cored¼C-sugar1t-cinnamon½C-water1T-lemon juice1T-butter1/8t-salt
Mix the crumbs, apples, sugar, salt and cinnamon well. Pour water and lemon juice over the mixture. Place in a buttered baking-dish. Place the butter over the top in small pieces. Cover the pan with a lid and bake in a moderate oven forty-five to sixty minutes. Remove the lid after the Brown Betty has been cooking twenty-five minutes. More water may be needed if the apples are not very juicy.
Hard Sauce(Four portions)
3T-butter1t-boiling water¼t-lemon extract¼t-vanilla extract¾C-powdered sugar
Cream the butter, add the water and slowly add the sugar. Continue mixing until very creamy. Add the lemon and vanilla extract. Form into a cube and place in the ice box. Allow to stand half an hour, then cut into slices and serve on top of the Brown Betty.
A THANKSGIVING DINNER IN THE COUNTRY
AFTER all the excitement of Alice's wedding, Bettina was more than delighted when she and Bob were invited to a family dinner at Aunt Lucy's on Thanksgiving day. "It always seems to me the most comfortable and restful place in the world," said she to Bob. "And Aunt Lucy is such a wonderful cook, too! We're very lucky this year, I can tell you!"
"Who's to be there?"
"Father and mother—we are to drive out with them—and Aunt Lucy's sister and her big family. Thanksgiving seems more natural with children at the table, I think. And those are the liveliest, rosiest children!"
Bob had slept late that morning, and consequently had eaten no breakfast, but he did not regret his keen appetite when Uncle John was carving the great brown turkey.
"The children first, John," said kind Aunt Lucy. "The grown folks can wait."
Little Dick and Sarah had exclaimed with delight at the place cards of proud turkeys standing beside each plate. In the center of the table was a great wicker basket heaped with oranges, nuts and raisins.
"It doesn't seem natural without pumpkin pie," said Aunt Lucy, "but John was all for plum pudding instead."
"We can have pie any day," said Uncle John, "but this is a special occasion. What with Dick here—and Sarah—and Bettina—who's some cook herself, I can tell you!—I was determined that mother should show her skill! And she did; didn't she?"
The menu was as follows:
Turkey with Giblet Gravy Oyster DressingMashed Potatoes Creamed OnionsCranberry FrappéBread Celery ButterPlum Pudding Hard SauceNuts RaisinsCoffee
BETTINA'S RECIPES
(All measurements are level)
THE THANKSGIVING DINNER RECIPES
Roast Turkey(Fourteen portions)
1 12-lb.turkey
The turkey should be thoroughly cleaned and washed in a pan of water to which one teaspoon of soda has been added to each two quarts of water. Wash the inside with a cloth, rinsing thoroughly, allowing plenty of water to run through the turkey. Dry well and stuff. Season all over with salt, pepper and butter. When baking, lay the fowl first on one side, then on the other until one-half hour before taking from the oven. Then it should be turned on its back, allowing the breast to brown. A twelve pound turkey should be cooked three hours in a moderate oven, basting frequently.
Oyster Dressing(Fourteen portions)
6C-stale bread crumbs½C-melted butter2t-salt½t-pepper1 pt. oysters
Mix the ingredients in the order given, adding the oysters cleaned and drained from the liquor. Fill the turkey and sew up with needle and thread.
Preparing the Giblets
Wash thoroughly the heart, liver and gizzard. Cut through the thick muscle of the gizzard and peel it slowly without breaking through the inside lining. Cut the heart open, and remove carefully the gall bladder from the liver. Wash carefully again, and soak ten minutes in salted water. Cook slowlyuntil tender, in one cup of water. More water may be needed. Cut fine, and add to the gravy. Save the stock.
The Gravy
1C-stock2T-flour1T-cold water¼t-salt
For each cup of liquor, which is left in the roasting pan, add one tablespoon of flour. Mix the flour with two tablespoons of cold water, add the liquid slowly, and cook two minutes. Add one-fourth of a teaspoon of salt, and the giblets. Serve hot.
Creamed Onions(Six portions)
2C-cooked onions1C-white sauce
Cook the onions in one quart of water in an uncovered utensil until tender. (About fifteen minutes.) Drain and add one cup of white sauce. Serve hot.
Plum Pudding(Six portions)
2C-soft bread crumbs¼t-soda¼t-cloves1t-cinnamon¼t-salt½C-suet½C-molasses4T-"C" sugar1 egg¾C-milk½C-currants½C-raisins1t-vanilla
Chop the suet, and sprinkle with one tablespoon of flour to prevent sticking. Add the raisins, currants, "C" sugar, salt, cinnamon, cloves and bread crumbs. Add the egg and milk beaten together, add the vanilla, mix the soda in the molasses and add to the first mixture. Fill a well-buttered pudding mould one-half full. Steam two hours. Serve with hard sauce.
Hard Sauce
1/3C-butter2T-hot water¾C-brown sugar½t-vanilla½t-lemon extract
Cream the butter, add water and gradually add the sugar. Continue mixing until very creamy. Add the vanilla and lemon extract. Chill and serve over the hot pudding.
PLANNING THE CHRISTMAS CARDS
"AND what is in this dish, Bettina?" asked Bob, as he lifted the hot cover.
"Candied sweet potatoes, dear, and I'm almost sure that you'll like them. I made them in the fireless cooker, and they're really more candy than potatoes."
"They'll suit me, then," said Bob. "The sweeter the better! My mother used to cook up candied sweet potatoes with a lot of brown sugar syrup—say, but they tasted good about this time of year when I would come in from skating! Well, I believe these are exactly like hers!"
"Only hers weren't made in a fireless cooker," said Bettina. "Now, Bob, as soon as you have allayed your hunger a little we must put our heads together long enough to get an idea for Christmas cards. If we have something made, it may take several weeks, and you know it is no small task to address several hundred of them. As soon as we have ordered them, we'd better make out our Christmas list. But first, what shall the cards be? Think, Bob!"
"Goodness gracious sakes alive, but thinking is hot work! Well, how's this? Suppose we don't have cards engraved—they're expensive, and besides, 'twould take too long! We'll find some plain white correspondence cards—or perhaps white cards with a red edge—and envelopes to go with them, and in the corner of the card we'll stick a tiny round snapshot of the house. Then we'll write this verse very neatly and sign it 'Bettina and Bob.' Perhaps you can improve on this, however:
Beefsteak Fireless Sweet PotatoesCreamed CarrotsPineapple Charlotte Custard Sauce
"Bob, that's the very thing!" cried Bettina.
For dinner that night they had:
Beefsteak Fireless Sweet PotatoesCreamed CarrotsPineapple Charlotte Custard Sauce
BETTINA'S RECIPES
(All measurements are level)
Fireless Sweet Potatoes (Candied)(Six Portions)
6 large sweet potatoes1C-brown sugar¼C-water1t-salt¼t-pepper1T-butter
Wash and peel the sweet potatoes. Slice them lengthwise in one-half inch slices. Make a syrup by boiling for five minutes the brown sugar and water. Add the butter. Arrange the potatoes in a fireless cooker utensil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, and pour the syrup over them. Place the heated disks under and over the pan of potatoes, and cook in the fireless an hour and a half.
Pineapple Charlotte(Four portions)
2T-corn starch4T-cold water¼t-salt¼C-sugar1C-boiling water2 egg-whites1t-vanilla½t-lemon extract2 slices of pineapple cut in slices lengthwise
Mix the corn starch, salt and sugar; gradually add the cold water, stirring well, and then add the hot water. Cook about five minutes, stirring constantly. Then add the vanilla, and the egg-whites stiffly beaten. Pour into a moistened mould in which the slices of pineapple have been arranged. Set in a cool place for two hours. Serve with custard sauce.
Custard Sauce(Four portions)
1½C-milk2 egg-yolks¼C-sugar½t-vanilla1/8t-salt1T-flour¼t-lemon extract
Mix well the sugar, salt and flour, gradually add the beaten egg-yolks, and the milk. Cook in a double boiler until the mixture coats a silver spoon yellow. Add the vanilla and lemon extract. Beat one minute. Serve very cold.
Roasting turkeys! Rich mince pies!Cakes of every shape and size!Santa, though they're fond of you,Christmas needs us housewives, too!
Woman holding platter with turkey in front of wreath, cherub at feet
HARRY AND ALICE RETURN
Two couples at table
"WHO can that be?" said Bettina, laying down her napkin. "Someone is at the door, Bob, I think. I wonder why he doesn't ring?"
"Hello!" said Bob, throwing open the door. "Why, Bettina! It's Alice and Harry! When did you get home?"
"We're on our way home now," said Harry, as he set down the suitcases he was holding. "Say, these are heavy! We thought we'd stop in for a minute to rest."
"Welcome home!" said Bettina. "Just think, we don't even know yet where you went for your wedding trip, though we suspected California."
"California it was," said Alice, "along with all the other recent brides and grooms. We escaped any particular notice; there were so many of us. It was rather a relief, though."
"Have you had your dinner?" asked Bettina, a little embarrassed at the thought of the "dinner for two" that she and Bob were just finishing. There was certainly not enough left for another person, not to suggest two. But then, of course there was her ample emergency shelf.
"We had our dinner on the diner," said Harry, "or we shouldn't have dared to stop at this hour."
"Do come on out to the kitchen," said Bettina. "Bob isabout to make some delicious sour cream candy, aren't you, Bob? Surely that is a splendid way to entertain a newly returned bride and groom."
"Fine!" said Harry, "though we can't stay long. We must hie to our own apartment and get rid of the dust of travel. We're looking forward to the time when we can return some of your hospitality. I shall learn to make even better candy than Bob's!"
For dinner that night Bettina had:
Pork Chops with Sweet PotatoesApple SauceBread ButterPerfection Salad Salad Dressing
BETTINA'S RECIPES
(All measurements are level)
Pork Chops with Sweet Potatoes(Two portions)
2 sweet potatoes1t-salt¼t-paprika2 chops1/3C-boiling water
Pare sweet potatoes, add salt and place in the bottom of a small roasting pan. Wipe pork chops and place on top of the potatoes. Place the pan, uncovered, on the top shelf of a hot oven in order to brown the chops. Brown on one side and then turn gently and brown on the other. Sprinkle with a little salt and paprika, and add one-third of a cup of boiling water. Cover, and bake one hour, or until the potatoes are done. Baste frequently.
Perfection Salad(Three portions)
1T-granulated gelatin4T-cold water4T-vinegar1T-lemon juice1C-boiling water4T-sugar½t-salt2/3C-diced celery½C-shredded cabbage1 green pepper, chopped2T-pimento, cut fine
Add the cold water to the gelatin, and let it stand for five minutes. Add the boiling water. When thoroughly dissolved add the vinegar, salt, lemon juice and sugar. Mix well. Addthe celery, cabbage, green pepper and pimento when the jelly begins to set. Pour into a mould which has been dipped in cold water. Allow to set in a very cold place for one hour. Serve with salad dressing.
Sour Cream Candy(Six portions)
2C-brown sugar1t-vanilla½C-sour cream or ½C-sour milk plus 1T-butter¼t-cream of tartar
Mix the sugar, cream of tartar and the sour cream or milk. Cook until a soft ball is formed when dropped in cold water. Remove from the fire and allow to cool. Beat until creamy and place in a well-buttered pan.
THE FIRELIGHT SOCIAL
"AND what have you been doing all day?" asked Bob after he had related his own experiences at the office. "Just my usual work this morning, and this afternoon I went to a meeting of the social committee of our Young People's League; you know I've promised to help this winter. They plan a social to be given in about two weeks to raise money for the orphanage fund, and I do think their idea is a clever one. You see, it's a 'firelight social'; admission ten cents. Mrs. Lewis has offered her house for it. Invitations are to be sent to all members of the church, Sunday school and league, inviting people to 'come and read pictures in the fire.' The cards are to be decorated with little pen and ink sketches of hearthstones with burning logs on them. Of course there will be a huge log in her big fireplace. Then as soon as the guests are gathered around, someone is to read aloud that passage from 'Our Mutual Friend,' where Lizzie Hexam reads the pictures in the firelight for her brother. Then pencils and paper will be passed among the guests and each one writes a short description of the pictures he sees in the fire. In ten minutes these are collected and read aloud, with a prize for the best one. Then corn will be popped and marshmallows toasted, and weird ghost stories told. (Of course certain clever people have been asked beforehand to be prepared.) Then supper will be served by candlelight; it will consist of things like sandwiches, cider, coffee, nuts and cookies. Don't you think a firelight social will be fun?"
"Sure it will! But I'm glad to-night we can be alone by our own firelight, Bettina!"
That evening for dinner Bettina served:
Fried Oysters Baked PotatoesBettina's Relish Asparagus on ToastApple Tapioca CreamCoffee
BETTINA'S RECIPES
(All measurements are level)
Fried Oysters(Two portions)
12 oysters½C-cracker crumbs1T-egg1T-water¼t-salt1/8t-paprika2T-fat
Look over the selected large oysters to remove the shells. Mix the egg, water, salt and paprika. Dip the oyster in the egg mixture and in the crumbs. Place the fat in the frying-pan, and when hot add the oysters. Brown nicely on each side, three minutes. Serve very hot on a hot platter. Garnish with parsley.
Bettina's Fried-Oyster Relish(Two portions)
1C-cabbage, cut fine1 green pepper, cut fine1 pimento, cut fine¼t-celery salt1/8t-mustard¼t-salt1T-"C" sugar2T-vinegar
Mix the celery salt, mustard, salt and sugar, add the vinegar. Pour over the pimento, green pepper and cabbage. Serve as a relish with oysters and meats. This relish should be served within one-half hour after it is made.
Asparagus on Toast(Two portions)
½ can asparagus tips1C-vegetable white sauce¼t-salt1/8t-pepper2 slices of toast
Heat the asparagus tips in the liquid in the can. When hot, remove from can upon slices of toast, sprinkle salt and pepper over each portion. Pour one serving of white sauce over each portion.
Apple Tapioca(Two portions)
4T-pearl tapioca3T-cold water1C-boiling water1/8t-salt4T-sugar¼t-vanilla2 sour apples
Soak the tapioca in the cold water for ten minutes in the upper part of the double boiler. Add the boiling water and salt. Cook until transparent. (About twenty minutes.) Cut the apples fine, mix thoroughly with the sugar, place in the bottom of a small baking dish, pour the tapioca mixture on them, and bake in a moderate oven until the apples are soft. (About twenty-five minutes. The time depends upon the variety of apple.)
ALICE'S TROUBLES
"WHY, Alice, come in! Are you going out to dinner, or just on your way home from some afternoon party?"
"I'm going down town to dinner with Harry; I'll meet him there. And afterward we are going to the theatre."
"What fun!"
"Yes, fun for me," said Alice slowly. "I persuaded him to go. Just think, Bettina, we haven't been to the theatre one single time since we've been married!"
"And that is—let's see—about six weeks?" said Bettina, laughing. "Come into the kitchen, Alice. I'm making a cranberry pie for dinner."
"A cranberry pie? One of those darling criss-crossy ones?" said Alice joyfully, throwing off her evening cloak. "Do let me help. I used to make little cranberry pies in a saucer when I was little! I had forgotten that they existed! Harry shall have one to-morrow!" And she rolled out the crust with deft fingers.
"How easily and quickly you do everything, Alice."
"Yes, too easily. Getting breakfast is fun, and getting dinner is fun, but it's over too soon. What do you do in the evening, Bettina?"
"Oh, stay at home and read and mend mostly. What do you do?"
"That's the trouble. Don't you get dreadfully bored just sitting around? Harry likes it—but I don't see how he can."
"But aren't you tired in the evening? I suppose he is."
"Tired? Mercy no! Not with the care of that little apartment! I like fun and excitement and something to do in theevening! I've been studying household economy, as you suggested, and I've learned a lot, but I can't be doing that all the time! Well, I must run on, Bettina! Let me know how the pie turns out!"
That night Bettina served:
Bettina's Pork Chops and DressingBaked Potatoes Apple SauceBread ButterCranberry Pie Coffee
BETTINA'S RECIPES
(All measurements are level)
Pork Chops Bettina(Two portions)
2 pork chops½t-chopped onion1T-chopped green pepper1½C-fresh bread crumbs¼t-chopped parsley½t-salt1T-melted butter1 egg-yolk¼t-celery salt1T-water
Add the onion, green peppers, parsley, salt and celery salt to the crumbs. Add the egg-yolk, butter and water, and mix thoroughly. Wipe the chops, and place one in a small pan (to serve as a roasting pan), place the dressing on top. Place the other chop on top of the dressing. Press together and bake in a moderate oven one hour. Turn the chops so that the under one will brown. Baste occasionally with one-fourth of a cup of hot water to which has been added one teaspoon of butter. Put a lid on the pan so that the steam will cause the chops to cook. Place one tablespoon of water in the pan to prevent burning or drying out. Replenish when necessary.
Apple Sauce(Two portions)
6 Jonathan apples½C-sugar1/8t-cinnamonEnough water to cover
Wash, pare, core and quarter the apples. Cover with water and cook until tender when pierced with a knitting needle. Add the sugar and cook five minutes more. Sprinkle cinnamon over the top when serving.
Cranberry Pie(Four portions)
2C-cranberries1C-boiling water1½C-sugar1 egg-yolk1T-water1T-flour½t-butter½t-almond extract
Cook the cranberries and water until the cranberries are soft. Add the sugar and cook five minutes.
Mix flour and water, add the egg-yolk, butter and extract. Mix thoroughly. Add to the cranberry mixture. Pour into the uncooked pie-crust. Place pastry bars lattice fashion across the top, and bake thirty-five minutes in a moderate oven.
Pie Crust(Four portions)
1C-flour5T-lard¼t-salt3T-water
Mix the flour and salt. Cut in the lard with a knife, and add the water very carefully, to form a stiff dough. Roll into shape, and reserve a small part of the dough for the bars. Fit the crust carefully into a deep tin pie-pan. Fill the crust with the cranberry filling, being careful not to let any juice run out. Cut the bars two-thirds of an inch wide. Moisten the ends, and arrange in criss-cross fashion across the pie.
SOME OF BETTINA'S CHRISTMAS PLANS
"TO-NIGHT," said Bettina at the dinner table, "I expect to finish three Christmas gifts—one for Alice, one for Mary and one for Eleanor. Now aren't you curious to know what I've been making?"
"Curiosity is no name for it," said Bob, "but I'm even more curious to know what particular thing it is that makes this ham so tender. Is it baked? Anyhow, it's the best I have ever eaten."
"Thank you," said Bettina, "but you always say that about sliced ham, no matter how it is cooked. But this is a little different. It is baked in milk."
"Great, anyhow," said Bob. "Now tell me about your conspiracy with Santa Claus."
"Well, I am making for Alice an indexed set of recipes—a card index. All the recipes are just for two, and they are all tried and true."
"Just for two,Tried and true—Sent, with Betty's love, to you."
echoed Bob. "You can write that on the card that goes with it."
"I shall have you think what to say on all the gifts, Bob. I must show you the box of cards. It is only a correspondence-card box, with the white cards to fit, but I'm sure that Alice will like her new cook book. Then for Mary and Eleanor Ihave made card-table covers. Mary's is of white Indian head—just a square of it, bound with white tape and with white tape at the corners for tying it to the table. It is to have a white monogram. Eleanor's is linen-colored and is bound in green with a green monogram. Hers is finished and I shall finish Mary's this evening—that is, if you will read to me while I work!"
"Hurray!" said Bob. "What shall I read? Mark Twain?"
For dinner that night they had:
Baked Ham Baked PotatoesCorn Bread ButterCranberry Sauce
BETTINA'S RECIPES
(All measurements are level)
Baked Ham(Three portions)
2/3lb.slice of ham one inch thick1C-milk1T-flour1T-water
Cover the ham with boiling water and let it stand ten minutes. Remove from the pan, and place the ham in a pan just large enough to hold it. Cover with the milk. Place in a moderate oven and bake thirty minutes. More milk may be added if necessary. When the ham is done, add more liquid (enough to make one-half a cup). Mix flour with water. Add the hot milk to this slowly. Heat and cook one minute. Serve with the ham.
Corn Bread(Three portions)
½C-corn meal2/3C-flour3T-sugar2t-baking powder½t-salt1 egg-yolk2/3C-milk1T-melted butter
Mix the corn meal, flour, sugar, baking powder and salt thoroughly. Add the egg-yolk and milk, and beat two minutes. Add the melted butter. Mix well. Pour into a well buttered square cake pan. Bake in a moderate oven twenty minutes.
Cranberry Sauce(Four portions)
1 qt. cranberries2C-sugar2C-water
Look over and wash the cranberries. Cook them in the water until they are soft and the skins are broken. Remove from the fire, add the sugar and stir well. Cook three minutes. Pour into a mould which has been dipped in cold water.
MORE OF BETTINA'S CHRISTMAS SHOPPING
"BOB," said Bettina, as she served the plum pudding, "Christmas is in the very air these days!"
"Did the Christmas spirit inspire this plum pudding?" said he. "Blessings on the head of Santa Claus! But why your outburst?"
"Because today I went shopping in earnest! I bought the very things that seem most Christmassy: tissue paper, white and green, gold cord, a ball of red twine, Santa Claus and holly stickers, and the cards to tie to the packages. I love to wrap up Christmas things!"
"And are most of your gifts ready to be wrapped?"
"No, not all, for some of them can't be made till the last minute. For instance, I thought and thought about Uncle Eric's gift! I want so much to please him, but he has everything that money can buy except perhaps a cook that suits him. Finally I decided to send him a box containing a jar of spiced peaches, a jar of Russian dressing, a little round fruit cake, and a box of fudge. The things will all be wrapped with tissue paper, and gold cord and holly——"
"Lucky Uncle Eric!" sighed Bob. "I wish Santa Claus would bring me a Christmas box like that—fruit cake and spiced peaches and Russian dressing——"
"Maybe he will if you're very good!" laughed Bettina. "If you eat everything your cook sets before you."
"Tell me something hard to do!" said Bob, with enthusiasm. For dinner that night they had: